Jun 16, 2017

Blog Tour -- North To You by Tif Marcelo

In this warmhearted and charming debut, a food truck chef and her long lost Army love clash when they cross paths in San Francisco.

NORTH TO YOU

Journey to the Heart #1

Tif Marcelo

Releasing June 5, 2017

Pocket Star

Camille Marino has got a full plate. As the sole guardian of her eighteen-year-old sister and the head chef and owner of a food truck, she’s used to life being a juggling act. With food to cook, social media accounts to manage, and a little sister to look after, she doesn’t have time for much else.

That is, until Drew Bautista walks back into her life.

Drew is Camille’s former high school crush and he returns to San Francisco to repair his relationship with his father before he ships out for deployment. By helping his father renovate his failing Filipino restaurant, he hopes to win back his respect. But when sparks fly between Drew and Camille—his father’s major competition and sworn enemy—Drew is conflicted. Should he join his father in the war against her food truck? Or surrender to the woman who’s given him a second chance at love?

Above the low
hum of the traffic, the people, and the planes passing overhead, a bell chimes.
Then two, then three. Soon, surround-sound church bells, signaling the start of
the new day, sweep over the breadth of my view.

“Wow.” The
music becomes the backdrop of the city I thought I knew. My eyes follow the
path of Market Street and the twinkling outline of the Bay Bridge. It scans to
the Transamerica Building, which cuts the ombré of the night sky down to the
yellow of the city lights. Sights now enhanced, brought to greater depth and
meaning.

“Right?” he
whispers next to me.

“Beautiful.”

“She is
definitely beautiful.”

My breath
hitches at Drew’s statement. He leans against the barrier, his back to the city
lights. His eyes are solely on me.

This man and
I know nothing about each other as adults except for what we revealed in the
last hour. He knows nothing of my dreams and hopes. I don’t understand the life
he’s chosen. And yet I’m bound to him with leftover feelings that are so
innocent and pure, feelings I’m not sure where to place now that they’ve been
pulled from memories packed away.

One thing is
sure. Right now is perfect.

I approach
him, place my hands on his chest.

He rests his
fingers lightly on my waist. “Camille—”

I stop him
with a kiss. Tonight has been crazy, magical, fuzzy, and weird, and I don’t
want to think about consequences, my overloaded plate of responsibilities, of
everything waiting for me down there, in the city below.

Character Q & A

We grabbed Drew after his first date with Camille. Ten years
have passed since he’s seen her and we wanted to know how he felt reuniting
with an old love.

So, Drew, how did the
date with Camille go?

Drew: It was…good.

Just good?

Drew: (grins dreamily) It was more than good. We had some
delicious food, a nice talk…

(silence)

Ahem…

Drew: Oh, sorry. Was just thinking of that beautiful woman. I thought it was a successful first
date, but she wasn’t exactly jumping at the next time we should see each other,
you know? She didn’t get into the specifics, but it sounds like she’s got a ton
of things going on, as I do. She wants to go slow, and I respect that.

Is this the right
time for a relationship for you? Aren’t you back in town for a limited amount
of time?

Drew: I’ve got less than a month before I have to deploy.
Not nearly enough time with the amount of work I’ve been given by my pop. But
whether I’ve got nothing to do, or if I work over time, I would be stupid to
let this second chance go. This is Camille. She disappeared from my life once
before, and I’m not letting her go without giving this little thing we have a
try.

Speaking of…the
choice to come home. Why now?

Drew: Ah…my pop. The reason why I’m here. To tell you the
truth, I wouldn’t have moved back home at all if it wasn’t for him. But things
have been tense for us for too long, and I couldn’t stand it. Life’s too short
to allow the bad blood between us to fester. Though he busts my balls every
chance he gets, I can’t deploy without us being straight. And part of me doing
work at True North is getting into a space with him where we can talk about
things.

What’s he got you
doing back at the restaurant?

Drew: Everything.

Everything?

Drew: Everything. A whole gut job. Meaning I’m spending my
last hurrah meeting contractors and pulling up floors and whatever my pop’s got
planned. But as much as I sound like I’m whining, I’m glad for the work because
it’s my chance to bring peace back home.

And seeing Camille—I can’t help but think that she’s part in
parcel of this new chance.

Should Camille decide
to go out with you again, what do you have planned?

Drew: (hands clasped behind his neck) She’s lived in San
Francisco all her life, but I want to make this place all new for her. Make it
different. Make it ours. So, I think we’re going to start with local tourist
traps.

Before we end this
interview, do you have any advice for people who don’t know whether they should
risk that second chance?

Drew: Yeah, one thing. Find out where your True North points
to, and if it’s to that second chance, run like hell after it.

Q&A
with TIF MARCELO

Book: NORTH TO YOU

Describe yourself in
five words or less.

Loyal.
Dedicated. Empathetic. Enthusiastic. Cheerful.

What are 5 things you
must have with you when you write?

I try not to
get into the mindset that I need anything but a pen and paper/computer BUT:

Coffee

My notebook

Something crunchy (almonds, cucumber rounds, Cheetoh’s—ha!)

My phone on silent

Marshmallow, Havanese-extraordinaire

What has been your
toughest scene or book to write?

The “darkest
hour” or also known as “the black moment.” It hurt my heart to bring these
characters’ biggest fears to fruition. And then, to somehow recover from it was
difficult because I wanted for it to come realistically and organically.

What did you enjoy most
about writing this book?

Oh, hands
down, it had to be the research! This book encompassed San Francisco (the city
of my child and young adulthood) and food (Filipino food, most especially). I
no longer live in San Francisco, so finding another eason to look back at old
pictures and to look at maps of the City brought me back! And with food, it’s
been a blast cooking and eating these foods just so my descriptions are
accurate. The things we sacrifice! ;P

A la Twitter style, please describe your book in 140 characters or
less.

This was my agent story! I participated a PitMad Twitter pitch contest
run by Brenda Drake. This is the pitch my now agent liked.

#dv#R Cami's found a 2nd ch @ love w/Drew, til she
finds out it's his fam's restaurant that wants her food truck out of business. #PitMad

How long have you been
writing, and what (or who) inspired you to start?

I’ve
always been a writer, and my imagination have always run amok. Though I went to
college and took up nursing and joined the Army, it never left me. I returned
to writing through blogging when my second son was born, and continued to do so
for over a decade. I began novel writing about six years ago, and was
encouraged by my mother, my husband and closest friends. This journey has
brought me full circle!

What do you do when you
are not writing?

I’m a mom of
four and a military spouse! Which means not only am I on the go every single
day, as a family we are dealing with moving/deploying/temporary assignments
quite regularly. Because of this, I practice yoga and run (very slowly). I love
to read and binge watch shows I’m always behind on. I also craft! (currently, I’m
cross-stitching something I’ve been working on for forever)

Do you have any advice
to give to aspiring writers?

First and
foremost, make a commitment to yourself. Set long and short-term goals in your
writerly life. Be kind to yourself.

Is there anything that
you would like to say to your readers and fans?

Thank you for
supporting this debut author! I hope you fall in love with NORTH TO YOU!

Tif Marcelo believes in and writes
about heart-eyes romance, the strength of families, and the endurance of
friendship. A veteran Army Nurse with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a
Master of Public Administration, she is a craft enthusiast, food-lover and the
occasional half-marathon runner. As a military spouse, she has moved nine
times, and this adventure shows in some of her free-spirited characters. Tif
currently lives in the DC area with her own real life military hero and four
children.